Cool News
SUNDANCE REPORT: Father Death sends in a great long report!!! COMPENSATION and SOUND AND FURY!
I'll never forget my first and only trip to SUNDANCE. Particularly the morning I went and saw GODS AND MONSTERS. I was sitting in my seat next to a dear friend I had made there. When this fellow comes up... I shake his hand, and instantly he's handed me a note and then returns to his seat. I unfold the note to find out that I had just met Father Death. He had written me a nice letter introducing himself and saying how much he loved AICN and what a pleasure it was to meet me. Oh.. And that I should see SIX STRING SAMURAI if I remember correctly. THen about the time I finished the letter his father, I believe, came up and told me that his son was deaf and really really appreciated that I was running his reviews. And you know what folks. That's great. IT was the first time that I really met one of you. And I loved being able to give someone an outlet to be heard. So... after all these years I find myself only too happy to once again count Father Death among my eyes watching things in Sundance. Here is his wonderful report....
Harry -
Father Death back here. My second visit to Park City
on Monday, January 24 was one of the most incredible
experiences I've had in my life. Be forewarned -- this
is the special kind of report, which may be
unconventional and you may find it hard to believe at
times. Trust me, I had a good time at Sundance Film
Festival -- and it was a profound and moving
experience for me as an attendee. I didn't expect this
to affect my inner self as much as it did for me that
day.
First off, I'm deaf. Really, it's true. I've been a
big fan of Ain't It Cool News for what, three years?
Though I can't comprehend the single line of spoken
dialogue in the movie, I understand the visual
language of film...you know. It's like I'm in the
silent era of Charles Chaplin and W.G. Fields and
Buster Keaton. I could understand the film with the
idea of what the linear plot is about without even
reading the synopsis. If the film is difficult to
understand due to the complexity of the plot and
character development -- namely, PRINCESS MONONOKE,
which I have seen three times in the theater by the
way -- I have to go back and see the film again after
a bit of research. Reading the plot summary,
interviews, articles -- anything I could find that is
vital to the comprehension and appreciation of the
film. I have seen quite a handful of movies that spoke
to me personally, such as Brad Bird's THE IRON GIANT
and Terrence Malick's flawed masterpiece THE THIN RED
LINE. What matters the most is the pivotal message of
the film without bordering on self-importance and
self-indulgence, both of which which I detest because
I find it an insult to my consciousness as a viewer. I
turned my brain off to watch THE CONVENT which I liked
very much -- and I have seen too many horror movies
before so it seems I was somehow desensitized ever
since I saw THE SHINING and ALIEN when I was a tyke.
For some reasons unexplained I couldn't stand some
movies like THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT and ARMAGEDDON,
both of which I consider the worst movies I've ever
seen.
Okay, enough jabbering. Here's the low down on my
experience attending Sundance Film Festival Y2K.
I drove solo all the way up to Park City from Provo,
which is at least 35 miles south of Salt Lake City.
It's my first time driving straight to Park City,
which is a little tricky to locate because it's the
kind of a desolated town sandwiched between the
valleys. Despite the fact the little lonely city is
very popular with the tourists and a perfect hangout
for the skiers and snowboarders. Park City have an
incredible history of its own as a mine town founded
in 1884. Nightwatcher has more experience than me and
he drove with me to see THE CONVENT last Saturday
night, which was an easy task nonetheless. It's mildly
amusing he made a blunder by driving the wrong way to
SLC instead of taking the exit to head for home after
we saw the movie. After all, departing from Park City
in pitch black darkness at night is somewhat
difficult. I enter the pathway to the city and drove
past the Eccles theater on Keane Blvd. The parking lot
of the theater was full to the brim for the morning
showing of GIRLFIGHT, which I've been told is the
cross between FIGHT CLUB and RAGING BULL -- not to
mention the fact a female protagonist in the movie. I
took the left turn on Park Ave. and drove past the
hordes of people of various ages straight to Park City
Library Center. I snapped the photos of strangers,
including the weird-looking staff who look like they
came from the outer space. I found this amusing
because I was reminded of that TV commercial of The
Gap with the bunch of orange vest freak poseurs who
literally shriek "Conform!" I could swear the bald
dude look like Michael Stipe.
I went into the big-ass white tent to buy an
individual ticket for the movie COMPENSATION and I
left to wander to buy the soda pop bottle and take
pictures. When I came back, I stood in the waiting
list line and wait for half an hour. After the tedium
of waiting in line, I was shuffled in the building and
climb upstairs and get into the screening room with
the ticket torn and had my hand stamped with the
ying-yang symbol by a nice little inspector woman. I
asked one of the staff members with the big
walkie-talkie whether there's the interpreter or not.
She told me to hold on and introduced Roger, who is
one of the interpreters for the deaf African American
actress Michelle A. Banks. Michelle was in attendance
with the director Zeinabu irene Davis and the actor
John Earl Jelks. Roger and I conversed a bit to get to
know each other a little better. I took the second
front row seat as the screening is being filled with
the horde of writers, publicists and ordinary
moviegoers. Zeinabu introduced her movie with the
interpreter translating word-by-word. I didn't take
the notes, so I don't have a good memory of what she
has to say. The movie was preceded by the 10-minute
short film ICE FISHING, which was well-acted and
beautifully photographed but left me in the cold.
COMPENSATION
It's an amazing and emotionally resonant experience to
watch the film almost entirely produced by African
Americans. For strange reasons, COMPENSATION remind me
of the two-time Sundance Film Festival 1998 winner
SMOKE SIGNALS. I'll quote the following right off of
the press kit:
Inspired by a 1906 poem from early African American
writer, Paul Laurence Dunbar, this unique drama
explores aspects of Black culture in both turn of the
century and present day Chicago in two parallel love
stories, both about the relationship between a Deaf
woman and a hearing man.
COMPENSATION is amazing because the film has the
innovative intermingling of the past and the present
-- Malindy Brown and Authur Jones in the early 20th
century and Malaika Brown and Nico Jones in the late
20th century, both played exquisitely by Michelle A.
Banks and John Earl Jelks. I'll try to keep the
spoilers minimal -- the hearing man falls in love
with a young Deaf woman on first sight and the
relationship began to blossom but ends in emotional
turmoil and despair due to the perplexity and
difficulty of the hearing-deaf relationship. Though it
may sound pretty depressing, COMPENSATION is an
incredible emotional wallop. I literally cried during
certain parts. It's the African American version of
CHILDREN OF THE LESSER GOD, albeit different. The film
have the pace so slow and plodding
it left some in the audience restless, but you get
accustomed to it. The beginning of the film was
introduced with the title cards and genuine still
photographs of Chicago lifestyle of the early 1900s,
accompanied by the variety of African musical scores,
most of which were so exotic I can't even discern.
Still, as the story unfolds with the past and the
present going back and forth, the audience was
spellbounded despite the slow pace and English
captioning intended to assist the deaf to understand
the film. COMPENSATION was filmed in black and white
and I found it to be well-written and directed and
acted. Not to mention the fact the movie "captures the
spirit of the silent film era". The film should be
lauded for the refreshening aspect of originality. In
truth, I admire the film despite some slightly stilted
acting (it's hard to act real good, you know). I think
COMPENSATION is a worthy contender for the Audience
Award for Dramatic Competition, which I think will
have a good chance at winning but I wouldn't bet on
it.
After the movie concludes, the director talked about
the film and answered some questions. From what I
remember, it took several years in the making -- which
may explain why the poster ads for LAST ACTION HERO
and SON-IN-LAW were visible in the subway station
scene. I did ask a question whether it's an
experimental film and how much it took to finance.
Unfortunately, I was flustered with embarrassment
because the question has already been answered in a
prudent matter. I don't know what I was thinking. It
was the first time I had to ask the question in
public, and hopefully I don't screw up again next
time. The Q&A session went on a little too long with
Michelle A. Bank's monologue whose furious expression
of facial and body language in American sign language
(ASL for short) was astonishing. After the session I
conversed a bit with the director through the
interpreter, but I didn't have a chance to talk to
Michelle 'cause she was pretty busy as a prude. I
asked Roger to take the picture of me with the cast
and director and he obliged. That's me on the right. I
had to mask my identity to ensure the anonymity -- I
wouldn't want to captivate on fame. I don't like to
smooch ass with the rich and famous, ya know.
For more information, check here at the web page:
I checked which film will be playing next. There's the
secret screening at 2:30 p.m., but I didn't hear about
what the particular film is. Maybe the surprise
screening could be MY GENERATION, the two-hour
documentary chronicling the events of Woodstock '69,
'94 and '99. I missed the opportunity 'cause I know
there's a long-ass line of people desperate to see the
film. I own the WOODSTOCK laserdisc -- I love taking
the nostalgia trip in the time machine.
I drove to the parking lot and was ripped off by the
parking vending machine -- I paid 50 cents per half
hour. Clocked in two hours, regrettable that I'm on
the streak to poverty. I walked up to Main Street with
determination like I'm climbing Mt. Everest. It was
exhausting having to walk uphill all the way to
Egyptian Theatre. I asked the staff member if there's
the line for THE CUP and she pointed me the way. I
stood in the line until I realize I made a mistake
'cause I do not have what the Salt Lake Tribune film
critic Sean P. Means call the "Willy Wonka Golden
Ticket". So I was deported to the long waiting list
line and I'm number 160, down to 159 when a guy in
front of me gave up. I knew it's impossible to get in
due to the exorbitant number of patrons, but there
might be a chance. So I initiated a little
conversation with the fellow patron Biker Chick to
pass time. I told her I liked THE CONVENT. She seemed
boggled after I mention I saw the innocuous looking 11
year old girl in attendance. Biker Chick told me she
saw SHADOW HOURS and it's very dark. Unfortunately, we
were out of the game so I advised her to arrive
earlier than usual. Biker Chick took the advice and
bid farewell before I left for good. At least I should
try my luck next time.
I wandered around on Main Street and ate Chinese food.
I drove to Yarrow Hotel near the intersection of
Kearns and Park Avenue. I asked some questions at the
booth and staked the spot in the wait line for the
showing of SOUND AND FURY, the documentary about the
debate of cochlear implant in the perspective of the
mainstream and the Deaf culture. I think SOUND AND
FURY is as controversial as JUST MELVIN, but I haven't
seen either so I cannot say for sure.
I saw Mike Mendez and his sidekick wandering in the
lobby (again I don't know who -- so I'll just refer to
him as the Will Ferrell dude). I struck the brief
conversation with him, complimented on his movie which
I call the cross between NIGHT OF THE DEMONS and FROM
DUSK TILL DAWN with THE BRIDE OF CHUCKY spoof at the
end. He was a little flattered, and said he would like
to check out the review of THE CONVENT which he heard
was wonderful. Since Mike and the Will Ferrell dude
were really busy, I had to cut the dialogue to give
them a break. I told Mike to stay cool and have fun,
and so they disappear for a while.
I managed to snag the waiting list ticket #1 exactly
one hour and a half prior. The fellow wait list patron
Michelle (#5) and I had a nice chat. We saw Nick Nolte
and AMERICAN PIE co-director Chris Weitz in the lobby.
The ticket receptionist told me Billy Watson and Kevin
Smith were there before me. I saw Tammy Faye Bakker,
who has her own documentary film THE EYES OF TAMMY
FAYE. I had a chance to snap the photo of Neve
Campbell chatting with Nick Nolte. She gave me that
smug expression to let me know I'm an asshole for
being an intruder. Roger was in the hall and I asked
him whether there will be a chance to interpret during
the screening. He doesn't know, but Michelle Banks was
with him to see SOUND AND FURY. She was behind at #25.
I was lucky to exchange the wait list ticket for the
individual ticket 'cause I was the first one who
arrived early.
Mike and the Will Ferrell dude reappeared on the
scene. I gestured to them to wait a moment and I asked
Roger to take the picture of us. He obliged again.
Left is Mike Mendez (in the black coat) and the Will
Ferrell dude right. Here's the photo as you can see...
Thanks goes to Mike and the dude for posing with me.
They're really nice -- you should have met them.
Finally the wait time is up and the line of patrons
were shuffled in. To my surprise I was not allowed
'cause I don't have that damn Willy Wonka ticket -- I
only hold an individual ticket. The same little polite
inspector who was at the door of the screening of
COMPENSATION expunged me from the line. I was a little
pissed and asked the receptionist what the fuck is
going on. The girl had to talk to the inspector to let
me in. The inspector realized the mistake and let me
in. She was embarrassed in the slightest for the
screw-up. She apologized profusely. I told the
inspector it's all right and gave a pat on her
shoulder.
The screening room is being filled up. Michelle A.
Banks and Roger and his wife were let in. I sat in the
middle with them. Then I saw another interpreter and
recognized him as a counselor at the local college. I
was astonished. I should call him Winged Tiger in
homage to L.A. cartoonist Phil Yeh's creation. He's
Chinese-American and he's really cool and funny. I
decided to sit in the front row for better viewing.
Then begins the usual introduction by the director
Josh Aronson and the producer Roger Weisberg.
The doc was preceded by the short film PICTURE DAY.
It's the short filmed at an elementary school in
Pickerington, Ohio and usually lasts 12 frames per kid
-- numbering in the hundreds of boys and girls ranging
from kindergarten to sixth grade. The children express
in the rapid pace of still photography from exuberant
to silly to curious to sad. I enjoyed the short
immensely not because it's amusing but also because it
offers the insight. I hope the short have the
circulation at schools and film festivals -- strange
how incredibly intriguing PICTURE DAY is to the
audience who saw the short.
SOUND AND FURY
An astonishing documentary. I've never had a difficult
time sitting through the documentary without the
jarring emotions it evoked. The documentary follows
the Artinian family on both sides -- Chris and Mari
whose baby was found deaf and Chris' brother Peter and
his wife Nina and their three children who are all
deaf. Peter is a vigorous opponent of cochlear
implant, and he fought with the relatives who decide
to implant their deaf children. Peter's daughter asked
to have a cochlear implant, which shattered Peter's
confidence. I couldn't go on, because it's hard to
remember what I observed and because it's an
emotionally intense experience to sit through. It took
a few years to make, but the effort paid off. SOUND
AND FURY is very much in the vein of HOOP DREAMS --
the theme of struggle and acceptance and conquest.
This is a brilliant and heart-rending documentary.
It's a wonderful and ambitious film about conflict and
family and life. The film has more drama, truth,
realism and emotion than a thousand Hollywood movies
put together. It's truly an emotional roller coaster.
After the ending I was wretched. I never felt sad and
angry until after I saw SOUND AND FURY. I was mentally
and emotionally exhausted because my ass was numb from
having endured watching the doc. I could go on, but I
don't want to sound like a shill. You have to see it
to believe it. The audience consisting mostly of
hearing people with little or no knowledge of the Deaf
culture was stunned and fascinated at the same time. I
know it sounds crazy, but believe me it spoke
personally to me. I think the audience have grasped
the crystal-clear conception of the conflict of the
mainstream and the Deaf culture. I bet SOUND AND FURY
will win the Audience award for the documentary
feature, though I could easily lose out of the game
because -- despite the fact SOUND AND FURY is a
tremendously fascinating, albeit controversial film --
it may not have struck the chord with the audience.
Besides that, there's too much competition.
After the film ends, the audience stood in ovation as
Peter Artinian and his mother Marianne came forward.
Peter was on the verge of an emotional breakdown when
he saw the enthusiasm of audience reception. The
ovation lasted for a few minutes. I did not expect it
to last that long and have not seen like this since
SMOKE SIGNALS.
Peter and Marianne Artinian and director Josh Aronson
and producer Roger Weisberg discussed the topic
extensively and took a long Q&A session that lasted
nearly half an hour, which is unexpected. Peter have
an incredibly distinct human expression exhibited
through ASL interpreted with near accuracy by Winged
Tiger. Peter's expression of signs and gestures were
as fast and furious as Michelle A. Banks. Peter and
Michelle interacted for a while, which was rather
fascinating. The majority of the audience stay to
watch the audacious session that almost stretched the
time limit (if there's ever one). After the conference
-- so much talk I cannot recollect a damn thing as I
write this -- I had the guts to congratulate Peter and
his mother for their courteous effort to allow the
crew to film throughout two years that the documentary
ends up as a result. Josh Aronson and Roger Weisberg
were too busy chatting with the audience members so I
didn't have the opportunity to give my
congratulations, though I did manage to shake hands
with Josh before he left.
I think SOUND AND FURY should have a limited
theatrical release, but that may not be possible due
to marketability and finance. The doc was funded
partially by Corporation for Public Broadcasting (PBS)
but the air date remains undetermined. The doc should
be acquired for theatrical distribution because it
deserves the attention and because I felt the
emotional impact of the doc shown on TV would be
lesser and may not be justified. Remember, HOOP DREAMS
was the 1994 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award
winner that was made for 700k and profited at almost
$8 million. SOUND AND FURY has a better chance of
being shown on PBS or other channels like IFC sometime
this year. To reflect the Sundance Institute founder
Robert Redford's complaint, film documentary is a
dying art form.
For more information on SOUND AND FURY, check here at
the web site:
I took some more pictures. I would like to express my
gratitude to Wing and Roger for their contribution to
Sundance Film Festival and especially for the deaf. I
commend their hard work and effort. Here's the pic of
Winged Tiger and Roger and his wife.
By the way, there's the Oscar-nominated German film
BEYOND SILENCE now available on video from Miramax
Films. It's a very good movie and I highly recommend
it.
I was exhausted and walked to the lobby. As I'm about
to leave to go home, I saw Ben Affleck chatting with
somebody and Ethan Hawke relax on the sofa chair,
reading the issue of Daily Variety. Too bad I ran out
of exposures. I'd hate to piss off the celebrities
like I did to Neve Campbell. Maybe Ghostface should
haunt her for good.
Chaos,
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+ Expand All
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Sound and Fury sounds awesome! I enjoy great documentaries now and again, but this just gets me excited. Great reporting Father Death!
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I was born in the wrong country. Excellent report Father Death.
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although if I were you, I'd've gone right up to Nick Nolte, gotten him in a headlock, and given him a class A noogie.
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Wish I was there. Has ANYBODY seen "Via Delorosa?" Has it been picked up? I know it showed Sunday and Monday, but has anyone heard anything? I am a huge David Hare fan and really, really wanted to see it.
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Sorry this is off topic but when are we going to get some news on Pitch Black?This looks like a cool Sci-Fi.
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He is Spanish! My best mate is Spanish. He says that there is a MORENO gene that makes them act all weird. I agree.
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Why is it that people who don't like the Blair Witch Project always hate it vehemently, calling it one of the worst films ever made? It seems to signal that the viewer in question is either A) fooled easily by savvy marketers or B) unimaginative and requiring their horror films spelled out for them. Calling Blair Witch one of the worst films ever is a lazy review that earns no respect. Armeggeddon, on the other hand, is a load of crap.
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I saw this film - unfortunately not in its entirety - at the IFFM this past fall. I was so moved by the images, so breathtakingly shot, that I recommended it to the folks I was there scouting for. They hated it, they were bored, they said it sucked. I couldn't have disagreed more, but kept my mouth shut.
It is so nice to see that this film made it beyond the hoards of crap at the IFFM to go on to Sundance. And how nice to hear that the whole thing was great. Now I just hope it gets picked up so I'll have the chance to see the rest of it.
Thanks, F.D. -
JABADADADADA
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Puke
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My God, this report was difficult to decipher. It's bad enough damn near every report has a dozen grammatical errors; at least you can scan it and at worst, the words are just a poor choice of synonyms, and it only takes a couple seconds to figure out what Harry was trying to say. This one was damn near unreadable, if only because you'd be reading, it would be going fine, words are spelled right and that makes things easier...and then you get a paragraph that makes NO SENSE WHATSOEVER.
Now, I know that there is, most likely, a lack of analogous words in ASL to English. You might think that there are certain words this guy just doesn't use on a daily basis, like, hmmm, "has." But then he uses words (usually inappropriately) like expunge and audacious, and that theory is damaged.
Listen, I hate to get on people's cases about spelling and grammar, because it just opens me up for criticism. I especially find distaste in discriminating against a deaf person. But there is something to be said for proper English. (albeit with a heaping helping of slang) I see enough bad spelling whilst on the Internet or grading papers. Could this, at least, be one of the few sites that keeps discerning it's grammar?
God damn it, Roger Ebert uses a spell checker, why can't Harry? -
GIRLFIGHT is NOT...I repeat NOT RAGING BULL or FIGHT CLUB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What it is, simply put, is a fantastic movie. It's arguably the best script at Sundance, written by first time writer/director Karyn Kusama. And easily the finest debut by an actress, Michelle Rodriguez, as an angry girl living in the projects in New York who turns to boxing. Michelle, who had neither acted nor boxed before is natural and believable in the role. The boxing, although not as dramatic as say Rocky, or Raging Bull, makes up for it in its simple realism.
But make no mistake, this is much more than just a boxing film. Besides it being a coming of age story, it also tells a very convincing tale of love between two boxers: a girl fighting to be respected in a world of men, and a man fighting to break out of the slum world he's always known.
SEE GIRLFIGHT. -
Can I be executive producer?
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Is it me, or is he slowing turning into Prof. Irwin Corey?
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yeah, that sounds pretty much like raging bull/fight club with a little romance/coming-of-age sprinkled in. or would you say it was more of a fight club/raging bull/pretty woman/st. elmo's fire/muppets take manhattan type film?
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The company I work for had the opportunity to make GIRLFIGHT and I beggy-begged to finance it. But even then it was a hard sell, because people can't seem to fathom the many layers of the story. The material is SO much more than a girl ROCKY or RAGING BULL. The fact of the matter is, like in any great film, there are many elements at play in the story and each one adds to the dramatic intensity of the story. These elements are balanced and propel the characters through the story in honest and amazing ways. At its core GIRLFIGHT is the story of finding the inner strength to challenge yourself--to define yourself in an environment that seeks to define you. Sounds like a bunch of PR bullshit I'm sure-- but when you see the movie you'll se what I mean. People seek to define things by comapring it--this movie, like its protagonist can stand on its own.
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I was just wanted to compliment you on the balls it takes to be deaf and still be in love with movies. You da man!
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I remember when i was a little kid, being a lazy ass (not that thats relevant, but i thought I'd put it in), There use to be films which really made you think. Honestly! what has happened to all those great stories which cause some sort of emotion movement with in our little souls? Now its all crap shoot and run, with the exception of SOME movies which REALLY do have some sort of impact, although most of these are just passed on as "independent" or "shit" movies cause the greater part of spectators just DO NOT GET IT!!
ps: South Park The movie> PLEASE! whats the world coming to? it should have been called southpark the musical!!!
pss: "Life is beautiful" was #1!! -
Hooooo... cant wait to get my hands on the Pokemon movie!! (JOKE! damit! im not THAT sad!):
Think about it: some of the movies which got far too much advertising... are pitiful!!
i.e: Showgirls,small soldiers, Jumajii,The world is not enough, Steven Segal Movies (not to offend... but did that man pull his pony tail FAR to tight so that all his face is streched thus explaining his "great facial actin characteristics")... hurrrrmmm... nevermind... Just thought I'd try to make a point... but I failed. Snifff...
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Never before had I experienced such insolence from someone how is neither in the place or the right to make such impertinent comments. Perhaps those finger tips of yours should stop trying to put everyone down and concentrate on the purpose of writing here in the first place. So maybe I typed a little quickly, so maybe I did not write anything extremely interesting. At least I don
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